What do you mean by LAN, WAN, MAN ?

A network can be defined as a group of two or more devices that are interconnected
with each other for the purpose of communication, data exchange, share resources etc.
Networks are usually categorized based on their geographical span. A network can be as
small as distance between a Laptop and wireless printer and as large as the entire
geographical world. LAN, MAN and WAN are the three important types of the geographical
area based network.

Local Area Network (LAN): The network that is restricted to relatively smaller
geographical areas are called Local Area Network (LAN). It may be confined to a room,
school, house or apartments. Even though the physical area covered by LAN is less than
MAN and WAN, the data transfer speeds are higher than MAN and WAN. Wired LAN can
be implemented using twisted pair cables and a wireless LAN using IEEE 802.11 standard.

Metropolitan Area Network (MAN): A MAN is a network that interconnects multiple

communicating devices, computers etc in a larger geographic area covered by LAN but
comparatively lesser area than WAN. MANs interconnect cities and towns to provide data
communication and networking. In MAN, multiple LANs are bridged using optical fiber
cables. Asynchronous Transfer Mode, Switched Multi-megabit Data Service, Fiber
Distributed Data Interface are some of the technologies used in MAN networks.

Wide Area Network (WAN ): WAN is a type of network that extends over a large physical
area, such as a state or country. A WAN could be interconnected LANs through telephone
lines, optical fibers or satellite links. The WAN technology helps enterprise operating from
distant geographical locations for data exchange and communication. The ‘Internet’ can be
considered as the largest WAN in a world. The two types of WAN are Point-to-Point WAN
and Switched WAN. The data rate of WAN is slow compared to LAN and MAN.
Explain the following terms with example:

 Pseudo Code
 Flow Chart
 Algorithm

Pseudocode

Pseudocode is a method of specifying an algorithm in structured English language.

Pseudo code use both natural language and programming language. It is language
independent and has no standard format. Pseudocodes are mainly text-based way of
expressing a problem. Given below is an example pseudo code that finds whether a student is
pass or fail.

If student's mark is greater than or equal to 50

Print "PASS"
else
Print "FAIL"

Algorithm

In simpler words algorithm specifies a series of steps or rules to solve a problem. An

algorithm must be unambiguous, specific and language independent. Writing an algorithm is
the initial step in order to solve a programing or mathematical problem. An algorithm
consists of logic, calculations and data processing. Pseudo code and flowchart are the two
methods for laying out an algorithm. An example algorithm is given below. The following
algorithm will find the area of triangle using the formula sqrt(s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c)).
Step 1: Start

Step 2: Read three sides (a,b,c)

Step 3: Calculate s=(a+b+c)/2

Step 4: Calculate area=sqrt(s*(s-a)*(s-b)*(s-c))

Step 5: Print the area of triangle.

Step 6: Stop

Flowchart

A flowchart is the schematic representation of step by step procedure. In other words,

it is the diagrammatic representation of algorithm. The standard flowchart symbols are as
follows.

Start/End

Action or Process

Decision

Input/Output

Connector

FlowLine